Small(ish) Meal No. 5: Stuffed Bell Peppers, inspired by delishyourdish’s stuffed pepper recipe

I took the basic concepts and worked with what I had. I like this dish because it’s super easy and is a good way to get a lot of vegetables (including a whole pepper—so good for you!).

To make 4 peppers, you’ll need:

• 4 bell peppers
• about 1.5 lbs of lean ground beef or turkey - I used lean ground beef (90/10) because I had turkey yesterday
• 1 package cooked cous cous or rice - use a flavored mix if you want. I recommend Near East because they make whole grain options and I like their flavors (I used the Toasted Pine Nut).
• as much spinach as you want
• spices - I used crushed red pepper, chili powder, paprika, thyme, basil, rosemary, and of course salt and pepper

Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees. Cut off the tops of the peppers and de-seed them. Place them in a roasting pan (I actually used a loaf pan, which worked well) and start cooking them. You’ll want to cook them for about 20-25 minutes, or until they start to get tender.

While the peppers are cooking, sautee the meat with some olive oil and your spices. When the meat’s 75% done, add the spinach. You can also add other veggies, I just had fresh spinach on hand that was about to die. Once the spinach and meat are finished cooking, add the couscous into the mixture. Make sure you season it well, especially if your couscous/rice isn’t flavored.

Once the peppers are just about done, remove them from the oven and stuff them. Pop them back in the oven for 5-10 minutes or until fully tender. You could sprinkle some shaved parmesan over the top if you want.

Other ideas:

• Add a few nuts (walnuts, almonds, pine nuts) to the meat/couscous mixture for extra texture and a little bit more protein.
• Other vegetables to try in the mix: broccoli, other leafy greens (kale, swiss chard, collard greens), onion, zucchini, tomato, etc.
• If you’re watching your calories closely, only add a small portion of couscous/rice to the mixture, so it’s mostly meat and veggies.

I hope you see how easy it is to take a recipe and make it your own, using what you like AND what you have on hand.